Innovation Strategy — Just Getting From “Point A” to “Point B” Isn’t The Point!
An effective strategy takes you stepwise from where you are now to a predetermined goal, like product launch. The strategizing part requires a candid assessment of what’s at both ends of the path so you know where you’re starting and where you want to go. An innovation plan is usually fairly detailed, iterative and benefits from teamwork. This Innovation Matters site will help you innovate successfully by avoiding common traps, understanding the best practices and learning how to use the right tools for the job.
When your objective is part of a personal strategy for achieving self improvement, for instance, working mindfulness meditation into your daily life, success is mostly under your control as long as the universe cooperates. For instance, finding the time to make something a new habit is often a mission critical component of implementing a “personal” strategic plan. Yet even this can be a challenge, and we all know that. My most recent success was actually doing 108 days in a row of yoga, with inspiration from Travis Elliott, the “Ultimate Yogi”, and thanks to my cat, Raven, for keeping me company on some late night workouts! There are plenty of great self-help guides. One of my current favorites is “Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives” by Gretchen Rubin (2015).
In the technology innovation context, it’s more than being committed. Simply being intentional about getting from “point A” to “point B” isn’t enough. What if a competitor gets there first? Or you don’t have exclusivity to protect your market? Witness the epic patent infringement battles between Apple and Samsung. Or if the goal is developing a medical treatment, it may not be worth the effort (and cost) involved if the therapeutic space is already crowded when you arrive. Your product has to be better enough than the alternatives so that the health care system will pay for it. Here’s a news story about states that won’t pay for a blockbuster drug to treat hepatitis C. And that’s just the developed countries’ perspective — how to make a given product available globally often adds a seemingly confounding layer of strategic and financial complexity to the process.
Successful innovation planning thus requires knowing way more than just the location of “point B” and heading in that general direction. One also needs to evaluate the lay of the land at “point A” and to understand the hurdles likely to be encountered and plan for them — including obtaining financing, hiring and retaining the right people with the right intellectual capital and effective teamwork skills, gathering research materials, securing patents or other exclusivity, avoiding the infringement of patents owned by others, navigating the regulatory system and qualifying for reimbursement by third-party payers. And also keeping an eye on the competition.
This integrated kind of planning can be quite complex, and is done best with a multidisciplinary approach and team, including consultants and staff. And the right tools. Stay tuned!